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were looking at the road but were not paying any attention to it. What they were doing varies enormously, from talking to passengers, to daydreaming, and now talking on a cell phone, even hands free phones, which are now the biggest cause of serious LBFTS accidents in the UK. The use of non-hands free cell phones while driving has recently become illegal in the UK and will cost a hefty fine and 3 points on their license.

According to research, talking on a cell phone is not quite the same as talking to a fellow passenger, who can also see the road and has a vested interest in keeping the driver's attention on the road and can even shout look out or grab the wheel if necessary. If a driver got into an argument with a caller, who may not even know they are driving or if they heard something really annoying or distracting it becomes even more dangerous as anger is added to lack of attention.

Finally, just think how often you are reading and your attention wanders even though your eyes continue to follow the text and you have to go back, perhaps several pages to the point where your attention was diverted. Another example is when you walk somewhere with a friend and when you get there you can't remember much about what you passed on the way or even which route you took because you spent the whole time you were walking deep in conversation and walking became automatic.

Once people know how to drive confidently, they tend to do that automatically too and they do many other things on mental auto-pilot. Throughout the day many of our actions, even quite complex sequences are unattended. There is a huge amount of research in support of my 'opinion' as well as confirming statistics that show cell phone users are causing as serious a risk to pedestrians and other road users as drivers who are drunk, overtired or on drugs. Therefore, although I hate to add more laws to the statute, while people are putting other people's lives [and property] at risk there has to be an enforcible legal constraint, regardless of the magnitude or frequency.

Learn more about this author, Marjorie Kirkpatrick.
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